Marking 20 years after the legendary game debuted in North America, giving players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Not literally, but try convincing anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues moving along the display in time with the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio previously tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant influence for many musicians featured, introducing decades-old bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. However, when the game became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered outdated material, however once it got included in the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated label. It gave all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album was still unreleased in the US, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their US tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Influence
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the group more money than any of their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging even in the hardest setting, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. They stated requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band had already completed a successful tour when their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it has risked overshadow everything else accomplishments. Last year, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the community active, and there’s expectations of something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has begun production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome another game following the classic?
“Our team believed such titles might become similar to sports games where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
